healthy vegan blog

As a vegan, I miss jello salads, but who wants to eat animal bone gelatin? Ick. Then I saw Susan’s recipe for Red, White, and Blue Fruit Terrine on FatFree Vegan Kitchen. It was so beautiful that I had to try it. Her recipe called for agar powder. I had never used agar until this recipe, and now I am a huge fan!

I did a little research and here is my “Ode to Agar-Agar”:

Agar-agar is an odorless, tasteless, vegetable gelatin made from certain species of red algae. It has been used in Japan since the 15th century. Available flaked, powdered, or in bars, agar-agar can be used as a gelling agent to make jellies, puddings, custards, etc.

So what is up with saying agar twice? It comes from the Malay word agar-agar meaning jelly. Many refer to it simply as “agar,” but I found a website that described different types of agars used in laboratories, and they were just plain nasty, so using the full word “agar-agar” is a good thing.

Not only is agar-agar a great vegan substitute for gelatin, but agar-agar gels more firmly than gelatin, and it sets and melts at a higher temperature. Agar-agar gels at approximately 88ºF, but once formed, it does not melt until 136ºF. Your “jello” mold will stay firm and beautiful at the picnic even in the summer heat.

Agar-agar is considered a health food. It is comprised of over 80% soluble fiber. It is high in iodine, contains trace amounts of calcium, iron, and magnesium, and is calorie free! The “kanten diet” (kanten is the Japanese word for agar-agar) recommends eating agar as a simple way to feel full. It works by expanding in the stomach, which means you eat less. And a study in Diabetes, Obesity and Metabolism showed the agar diet resulted in marked weight loss due to the reduced calorie intake.

To use agar-agar, add it to your liquid of choice (usually fruit juice), bring it to a gentle boil, then simmer while stirring until it completely dissolves (about 5 minutes). The liquid will gel as it cools.

Here’s a general guide on how to use agar in recipes:

• Substitute agar powder for gelatin using equal amounts.
• 1 tablespoon of agar-agar flakes is equal to 1 teaspoon of agar powder.
• To set 1 cup of liquid, use 1 teaspoon of agar powder or 1 tablespoon of agar-agar flakes.
• It is important to note that more acidic foods may require a higher agar to liquid ratio.

As for the Red, White, and Blue Fruit Terrine, I followed Susan’s recipe exactly except I couldn’t find agar powder, so I bought Eden Foods’ Agar Agar Sea Vegetable Flakes. I used 2 tablespoons of flakes for the recipe. With agar-agar, there are endless possibilities of pretty fruit dishes and vegan jello recipes! YUM!!

The best organic chocolate is Chocolove Organic Dark Chocolate Bar 73% Cocoa. According to their website they do not claim that Chocolove bars are vegan, but they “take every measure to assure that milk chocolate is kept away from dark chocolate. You can expect our organic dark chocolate to be the least likely to contain any traces of milk chocolate.” Wouldn’t it be great if they applied for vegan certification?

Three squares of this chocolate is very satisfying and contains only 92 calories, 6.5 grams of fat (4g saturated, 0 trans fat, 0 cholesterol), and 4 grams of sugar.

Some wine makers use animal products in the finishing process. I love Yellow Tail Shiraz Grenache, and they state on their website:

“Drink assured. Our [yellow tail] red wines are 100% animal and animal byproduct free -except of course the animal on the label. However, you will find a small amount of gelatin used in the finishing process of our white wines and therefore they aren’t appropriate for our vegan friends. “

I wish they would commit to making all vegan wines, but at least they are upfront with consumers. Is your favorite wine vegan? If yes, please comment, I would love to try other vegan wines.

One 6oz glass of this wine has 120 calories.

Earth Balance Whipped Spread is honestly as good as butter and much, much better for you than butter or margarine. It is certified organic, made from expeller-pressed, non-GMO oils, and it does not contain hydrogenated oil or trans fats.

One tablespoon of Earth Balance Whipped has 80 calories and 9 grams of fat (2.5g saturated, 0 trans fat, 0 cholesterol). One tablespoon of butter contains 100 calories and 11 grams of fat (7g saturated, 3mg cholesterol).

So even if you are not vegan, a switch to this spread will be good for your health.

We love SoyBoy Smoked Tofu. It is ready to eat cold, but we like to bake it. The package contains two blocks, and Chet cuts each block into 8 slices. In this photo he has cut one block; we usually heat 3 blocks.

He puts the slices on a cookie rack on top of a cookie sheet, sets the oven to broil at 500º, and puts the tofu on the top rack for 6-7 minutes (no preheating necessary – save electricity). Then he flips the slices and puts it back in for 3-4 minutes. So easy, so healthy, and so very, very yummy!!! Here is the tofu after it is broiled.

The last ingredient is natural hickory smoke flavor. This is a healthy vegan ingredient. According to Soy Boy’s website, “to make natural hickory smoke flavor, hickory chips are heated to a temperature high enough so they begin to smoke, but not burn. The smoke is blown over cooling coils where it condenses into a liquid that can be filtered and bottled. This liquid smoke is a natural product with beneficial antibacterial and antioxidant properties.”